Bavarian Nordic Agrees to $2.99 Billion Private-Equity Takeover
Under the deal, accepting shareholders of the Danish vaccine maker will get 233 kroner in cash for each share held. The price is a 21% premium to Bavarian Nordic's closing price of 192.50 kroner on July 23, the day before the company confirmed that it was in talks with the consortium over a possible takeover.
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19 minutes ago
- Yahoo
GSK Lifts Outlook As Specialty Medicines, Vaccines Fuel Growth
British pharmaceutical giant GSK Plc (NYSE:GSK) shares rose on Wednesday after reporting second-quarter results that surpassed analyst expectations and led the company to raise its full-year 2025 guidance. Driven by exceptional growth in Specialty Medicines and Vaccines, GSK's second-quarter sales reached $10.66 billion (7.98 billion British pounds), a 6% increase at constant currency, exceeding analyst estimates of $10.33 billion. Core earnings jumped 15% at constant currency to $1.24 per share (46.5 pence) outperforming the consensus forecast of $ company attributed this core earnings growth to the strong performance of its Specialty Medicines and Vaccines divisions, coupled with higher royalty income and a disciplined escalation of investment in key research and development (R&D) areas, particularly within Oncology and Vaccines. Vaccine sales jumped 5% (+9% at constant currency or cc) to 2.09 billion pounds, reflecting growth in Meningitis vaccines related to uptake following expanded recommendation and public funding of Bexsero in Europe, as well as growth in Shingrix driven by launch uptake in France and strong demand across several other European markets and Japan. Arexvy sales reached 66 million pounds, up 6% (+13% cc). Meningitis vaccine sales increased 17% (+22% cc) to 379 million, while established vaccine sales of 787 million increased 2% (+6% cc). Shingrix sales reached 853 million pounds, up 3% (+6% cc). In July, the FDA agreed to review the application to extend the indication of Arexvy (Respiratory Syncytial Virus Vaccine, Adjuvanted) to adults aged 18-49 who are at increased risk. Also in July, the FDA extended the review period for the Biologics License Application (BLA) for GSK's Blenrep combinations for relapsed or refractory multiple myeloma patients who have received at least one prior line of therapy. View more earnings on GSK Specialty Medicines sales grew by double-digit percentages (+10% and 15% cc) in the quarter to 3.33 billion pounds, reflecting continued growth across disease areas, with strong performances in HIV, Respiratory, Immunology & Inflammation, and Oncology. General Medicines sales fell by 10% (-6% cc) to 2.57 billion pounds. GSK is progressing on 14 major pipeline opportunities, each with a potential value of over 2 billion pounds, set to launch between 2025 and 2031. Phase 3 study for tebipenem, a new antibiotic for complicated urinary tract infections, was stopped early because it worked so well. The company plans to file for approval by the end of the year. Phase 3 development for depemokimab, aimed at treating COPD, has begun with the launch of the ENDURA study program. Key trials expected to begin in the second half of 2025 include GSK'227, a B7H3-targeting antibody-drug conjugate for small cell lung cancer, GSK'981 (IDRx-42) for second-line treatment of gastrointestinal stromal tumors, Efimosfermin for MASH, and an ultra-long-acting injectable HIV treatment combining cabotegravir and rilpivirine, to be given every four months. Tariff Outlook and Guidance Addressing a broader macroeconomic concern, GSK acknowledged the U.S. Administration's initiation of an investigation under Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act, which seeks to ascertain the potential effects of pharmaceutical product imports on national security. The company said it is well-positioned to respond to the potential financial impact of tariffs, with mitigation options identified. According to Reuters, GSK's CFO indicated an anticipation of some tariffs coming in the second half of the year, which are expected to lower the gross margin slightly. GSK raised its full-year 2025 guidance and says it includes tariffs enacted thus far and the European tariffs indicated this week. It now expects sales to increase toward the top of the 3%–5% range. Core operating profit and earnings are also expected to grow towards the top end of the 6% to 8% range. Specialty Medicine sales are expected to increase in the low teens versus prior guidance of a low double-digit percentage. Vaccine revenue is expected to decline by a low single-digit percent to broadly stable compared to the prior outlook of a decrease of low single-digit percent, and general medicine sales are expected to be broadly stable. Price Action: At last check on Wednesday, GSK stock was up 3.57% to $40.37 during the premarket session. Read Next:Photo by HJBC via Shutterstock UNLOCKED: 5 NEW TRADES EVERY WEEK. Click now to get top trade ideas daily, plus unlimited access to cutting-edge tools and strategies to gain an edge in the markets. Get the latest stock analysis from Benzinga? GSK (GSK): Free Stock Analysis Report This article GSK Lifts Outlook As Specialty Medicines, Vaccines Fuel Growth originally appeared on © 2025 Benzinga does not provide investment advice. All rights reserved. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
Yahoo
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HSBC's $300 Million Scandal Resurfaces -- Swiss Probe Reopens Risk for Global Bank
Swiss and French authorities have opened a new investigation into HSBC Holdings Plc's (NYSE:HSBC) Swiss private bank, reigniting concerns over legacy compliance risks that had long been buried. The probe centers on two historical client relationships, according to the bank's latest disclosure. While the details remain limited, HSBC warned investors that the potential impact on the firm could be materialthough the timing and outcome are still anyone's guess. Warning! GuruFocus has detected 6 Warning Sign with HSBC. This isn't the first time HSBC's Swiss arm has drawn regulatory heat. Just last year, Switzerland's financial regulator, Finma, found that the bank failed to perform adequate checks on politically exposed personsclients considered higher risk under anti-money laundering (AML) frameworks. Over $300 million in questionable transactions, processed between 2002 and 2015, were flagged. As a result, HSBC was ordered to tighten its AML controls and temporarily halt onboarding any new politically exposed clients. Now, with a fresh spotlight on its pastand scrutiny from two countriesHSBC's private banking business could be looking at a longer road to reputational repair. While this doesn't change the fundamentals overnight, it reopens old questions about governance and risk oversight. Investors watching from the sidelines may want to stay alert: depending on how the investigation unfolds, this story could evolve into a much bigger headline. This article first appeared on GuruFocus. Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
CNBC
22 minutes ago
- CNBC
Novo Nordisk's stock plunge isn't surprising. Why companies clear the deck for new CEOs
Novo Nordisk shares nosedived on the day its new chief executive, Maziar Mike Doustdar, was appointed. But that shouldn't have come as a surprise to investors. Minutes before the news of Doustdar's appointment on Tuesday, the Danish pharmaceutical giant reported a profit warning, slashing its operating profit growth by around a third to the new normal of 10% to 16%. It also forecast slower-than-expected top-line growth. The company appears to have attempted to clear the deck for its new CEO, but far from being a unique strategy to reset expectations with investors, it has now become a "pretty common practice," according to Michael Field, Europe market strategist at Morningstar. Field said that companies do this to "give the new CEO a chance to succeed and hit the ground running, without having to deal with quarterly profit warnings for a year or more after they join." "If they can 'kitchen sink' earnings around the CEO appointment, then the new CEO should be quickly able to show improvement in the business, which is good for everyone involved, and of course, the share price," he added. Other Stoxx Europe 600 index companies have exhibited similar strategies. A tried-and-tested technique For instance, on June 9, Swedish medical device maker Elekta announced the appointment of its new CEO, Jakob Just-Bomholt. The following day, the company released the results of a "proactive" review to "improve the quality" of its orderbook, which showed that it was about 4.9 billion Swedish krona ($503.7 million) short of its previous estimate. The stock fell 4.7% — the biggest drop since April's U.S. tariff-related volatility. "A new CEO was announced yesterday, but the investor update on Tuesday brought some further surprises that one might normally have expected to be announced at a later date," said JPMorgan analyst David Adlington on June 10. "We note that one option for the new CEO to generate renewed investor interest could be to rebase the guidance." IT software and service company Tietoevry did the same on July 21. Endre Rangnes, who had been interim CEO since May, was officially confirmed as chief executive and President. The following day, the Finnish technology company reported its interim half-year report, which said organic growth would go into reverse by 4%. "While we can recognize our strengths and achievements, we have not succeeded in delivering adequate financial performance and have suffered from lack of growth over an extended period of time," Rangnes said in his second communique to investors as chief executive. The stock dropped 13% on the day. The automaker Renault also pulled off the tried-and-tested technique on July 15. Instead of making a dedicated alarmist filing, the company lowered its profit forecast for the year during its scheduled half-year results. It did, however, announce Duncan Minto as interim chief executive officer five minutes before its earnings. In Renault's case, the automaker had announced its new strategy only a month earlier under its former chief executive Luca de Meo, who abruptly exited the company to lead ailing luxury goods maker Kering . Renault's stock, which had already been bruised by the shock exit of its former CEO a month earlier, fell another 18.5%. The stock market is littered with many such examples of chief executive appointments that are immediately surrounded by profit warnings. "The CEO themselves may advocate for this as a condition of them joining," Morningstar's Field said. "Instead of uncovering mess after mess, the new CEO may simply ask the board to fully evaluate the business ailments beforehand and allow them a fresh start." 'Every situation is different' Yet, investors have been unable to model the behavior and look past efforts by companies to reset. Why? "Mainly because every business situation is different," Field said. "There are no hard and fast rules, which makes it tough for investors to know how much bad news has already come out, or when there is more to come." The case for "buying the dip" in the stock price on such supposedly predictive behavior from companies has also been challenging. "If a CEO is really clearing the deck, then there is likely a lot of bad news already priced in to the shares as a result," Field said. "That said, every situation is different, and investors really need to assess if a change of leadership can actually fix the business or if there are structural issues that will continue to lead to worsening results." Woes with Novo Nordisk's share price are well understood among investors. The stock had declined by more than 60% since its all-time high in June 2024 on disappointing topline growth of its blockbuster weight loss drugs. Perhaps the reset in guidance from Novo was warranted, since investors punished its U.S. competitor Eli Lilly too, sending its shares lower by 5.6%.
